Keep the Exclusives Coming
With Sony and Microsoft both heading into a new generation, Nintendo’s focus needs to continue to be about bringing experiences you can only get on the Switch.
They’ve done a great job so far, and 2019 was one of the best years for exclusive we’ve seen yet, with titles like Fire Emblem: Three Houses, Luigi’s Mansion 3, and Pokemon Sword and Shield.
Now though, the big question is: can Nintendo keep up that pace? We only know about a handful of Nintendo games coming next year; Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE, Animal Crossing New Horizons, Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition, and a big maybe for Metroid Prime 4.
That leaves a lot of questions leading into when Sony and Microsoft will start announcing their launch lineups. Now, more than ever, it’s important for Nintendo to have a clear schedule for players, keeping their interest on the Switch with new and exciting software.
They’ve already tapped the well with most of their big series, but if Nintendo can manage to get Breath of the Wild 2 or a new Mario game out in 2020, it’d go a long way to keeping their momentum going.
Forge Even More Third-Party Deals
While Nintendo’s first-party teams make some of the best games out there, it’s simply too hard to fill the entire year with titles from them.
Nintendo has done a fantastic job of working with third-party studios over the last couple of years. They partnered with other studios on games like Fire Emblem Warriors, Cadence of Hyrule, Dragon Quest XI S, and Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3.
Third-party exclusives have also come to Switch, like Octopath Traveler, Astral Chain, Daemon X Machina, Golf Story, The Stretchers, and more. Past that, we’ve seen some huge third-party titles, like Witcher 3 and Overwatch, come to Switch.
It’s imperative that Nintendo continues to support these relationships, as third-party games are a tremendous help when it comes to fleshing out Nintendo’s release calendar, and constantly keeping something interesting on the Switch.
As PlayStation and Xbox amp up, Nintendo will want to stack the deck with as many releases as possible. Let third-party companies work on famous franchises like Star Fox or F-Zero, continue to bring big games to the system that you wouldn’t expect.
We know that No More Heroes 3 and Bayonetta 3 are on the way, but if Nintendo can bring even more to the system next year, it’d be a strong move.
A New Inventive Gimmick Like Labo or Ring Fit
The Switch has been a centerpiece for the boundless creativity of Nintendo, with two incredibly unique experience, Nintendo Labo and Ring Fit adventure.
The former blew people away with ingenious cardboard creations that let you interact with games, while the latter is probably the greatest fitness video game we’ve ever seen, combining a turn-based RPG with a fairly strenuous workout.
While these two experience are far from the most successful Switch games, they do help reinforce that idea of the Switch being incredibly unique. You just can’t get an experience like Labo anywhere else, literally nowhere else.
In 2020, Nintendo will want to continue driving home the uniqueness of the Switch, attracting new users with things they simply can’t get anywhere else.
I can’t begin to predict what kind of new gimmick Nintendo might come up with. After all, who would have ever predicted we’d be putting cardboard cutouts together.
Still, you can bet Nintendo will have something in the works.
Release a New Hardware Iteration or Feature For the Holidays
Holiday 2020 is going to be the most harrowing part of the year, as we know PlayStation 5 will be hitting, and possibly the next Xbox. We already have the Switch Lite as a cheaper handheld-only option, but given Nintendo’s history with iterations, it’s likely another Switch version will come at some point.
Holiday 2020 would be the perfect time to launch some new iteration or piece of equipment. Maybe a Switch with a drastically better battery life, and more processing power. Perhaps we could even see a new version of the dock that enhances the Switch, and lets it handle more powerful games.
Obviously, it’s too hard to say what Nintendo could be working on in secret, but something flashy and new in terms of hardware could help the company keep surging forward at the end of 2020.
About the author
